The site Open Electronics recently posted a step-by-step guide to using the EAGLE PCB design software to make your own custom Arduino shields. EAGLE is a popular choice for hobbyists because it’s cross-platform and has a free limited version for non-commercial use. Not only that, but the PCB design files for the Arduino boards themselves can be downloaded in EAGLE’s file format. So if you’re interested in doing away with solderless breadboards or perfboards in your Arduino project and are looking for something with a little more polish, check out this tutorial for how to get started. [via Electronics-Lab.com]

Matt Richardson is a San Francisco-based creative technologist and Contributing Editor at MAKE. He’s the co-author of Getting Started with Raspberry Pi and the author of Getting Started with BeagleBone.

Make sure that you allow space on the back of the shield to allow for the USB connector and the DC Power connector.
Components on the back by the USB connector and even vias are likely to short out on the USB connector shell which is grounded.